Feng Shui Dos and Don’ts When Buying a New Home

Renowned feng shui master Dato' Joey Yap takes the stress out of buying a new home with a guide to what to look out for when buying a new home

When it comes to buying a new home, apart from cost, location and what works for you and your family, it's also reassuring to know if your possible purchase is feng shui compliant.

But what are the things to keep in mind when making this decision? We speak to Dato' Joey Yap about some crucial feng shui dos and don'ts.

Are there any general feng shui dos and don’ts when purchasing a new home?

Feng shui is all about how the energy in the environment affects you. Whether you are aware of it or not, the effects are there. So, as a general rule of thumb, if it looks good, it feels good, then the feng shui is probably good.

In the study of feng shui, the energy comes from the surrounding environment such as rivers and mountains. The simple rule here is that if they are within your line of sight from your home, then you should be able to tap into their energy. Without going into details, different natural landforms provide different benefit so it really depends on what you’re looking for.

What do we need to avoid with regards to the exterior?

Sharp edge pointing towards the main door
Having the door facing directly towards balcony or kitchen door or back patio.
Main door facing towards the road T-Junction
Lamp pole, pillar or tree trunk facing towards main door.
Kitchen stove not too close to the kitchen sink
Uneven ceilings.

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Above While mountains and water are considered favourable, always note the distance of both features (Photo: iStock)

What are some general feng shui rules when selecting a building site for your new home?

Authentic, classical feng shui places heavy emphasis on the vicinity of the home. In fact, the etymology of feng shui comes from a famous saying "Qi (or energy) is dispersed by the Wind and gathers at the boundaries of Water”. Thus, the external environment is the reservoir of energy. If the energy of the surrounding area is poor, there isn’t much to tap into in the first place.

Do: Ideally, you’d want to have a building site that has mountains in the distance and a water feature such as a river or a lake nearby.

Don't: Forget to take note of the distance between your property and these features as they can be considered bad if they are in close proximity to your house (such as at the base of a mountain or right next to a lake).

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Above Symmetry in floor plans is favourable (Photo: iStock)

When looking at floor plans, are there any auspicious home shapes to favour and avoid?

Do: Go for a floor plan that’s as symmetrically square as possible. In the context of feng shui, the energy that permeates in your home isn’t static. Certain parts of the house hold certain types of energy in any given year that’s beneficial for different purposes.

By having a square-ish shaped floor plan, you would be able to access and utilises all these different sectors.

Don't: Go for odd-shaped houses. This includes L-shaped houses as well as narrow floor plans.

Besides being non-conducive for Qi to flow, it may even affect your general well-being in certain cases depending on which part of the house is “missing”. When you have so-called missing sectors, it may cause certain issues.

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Above The front door should be left uncluttered for maximum energy flow (Photo: iStock)

Are there any rules with regards to the front door?

Do's: It is highly recommended that externally and internally (both facing in and out), there should be a wide space. In feng shui, we call this the external and internal “Bright Hall” respectively. It is understood that these are the spaces where Qi gathers before dispersing and flowing into the different sectors of the property.

Don't: Place the “toilet seat” directly above the main door in the second floor of the house.

What are the general tips in relation to other rooms in the house?

Do: The movement of Qi or energy flow can be conceptualised by the moment of the occupants themselves. Therefore, if you want to get from A to B in a house, the best way to do so is to not have any cluttered area and where you would be able to walk with relative ease. The opposite of this would not only impede your general movement, but also the Qi flow.

Don't: Have any sharp edges pointed directly to where you’re sitting, whether it's the kitchen stove or the head of the bed. In feng shui, sharp edges are known to produce “Sha Qi” or negative energy. It can also be produced when the front door is directly facing your bed, study table, kitchen stove and so on. So you might not want to directly place yourself in front of the doors.

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Feng Shui Dos and Don’ts When Buying a New Home